Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1887-03-14
INDIAN GIRLS.
A Movement to supply Them With
Industrial Pursuits.

and primers for coppsr-colored ur-
chinsr'
Miss Grace Howard looked up at the
question, gIancing from the cheerful
glow OF the library CRATE out Of window
at the eddying March snow fakes, whirl-
ing round and about in their best Knick-
erbocker imitation of a northwestern
blizzard.
at looks more comfortable here In
deed" she said, "but l expect to be off
for Dakota In April or May"
When you appeal to the conscience OF a
community 1t Is more often than not a
woman who makes the first response. The
tale ola century OF dishonor has struck
home to women's hearts, and the first
tlutter OF surprise that ran rou the
country few weeks ago over the an
nouncement that Miss Elaine GO0dale
had gone to Dakota to teacn the Indians
had hardly subsidized when it was stirred
again by the rumor that MISS Grace
| Howard, daughter OF Joe Howard, the
| journalist, was making ready to start
upon the same erTand.
Miss Howard, who has done efficient
service among the east side tenements of
| New York, will be missed by the rough
and tumble lads Of the missions in which
she has worked. She has the oval
face, the clear olive skin, the
| brown hair, the steady eyes and straight
| forward manner OF young woman VINO
| is In earnest in whatever task she UNDER
| takes.
II shall be stationed at Crow Creek"
she replied to my questions, looking back
once more at The Pickering fire light.
Miss Goodale is at Lower Brule, and we
shall be about twenty-five miles apart.
| There are 2, 400 Indians at these two sta
finnG ia fnr nj afx
| among them.
LAS for the spelling book and primer"
she went on, 81 am not going among the
| Indians as teacher and doubt if take
so much as an alphabet with me. My
plan is of different sort, and / have had
1t In mind for two or three years now. |
have spent great deal OF time at Hamp.
| ton Institute and have talked much with
the Indian girls who are receiving their
| education there. In all my conversations
| with them l have been struck by their
dread OF return home. 1t is not that
| they 40 not pine for their own kin and
their own color, for the race instinct and
the home instinct is strong with
every Indian woman, but that
there is absolutely nothing on
the reservations for them to do. They
have learned the ways of civilization and
| they are going back to barbarism. They
have begun to think a little as white
| women think and do a little as white
women do, and the new life they have
commenced to live is on the point of
| dropping absolutely away from them.
For the Indian boy there is always the
farm. For the Indian girl there is moth
ing. Housekeeping in An Indian cabin is
too simple to furnish an occupation, and
II one wishes to sew there Is not so much
as ascrap or rag on which to employ
the needle.
"The wants Of women always, l think,
have an especial interest for other women,
and go 1t is the unhappy position of these
returned Indian girls that has appealed
to me quite as strongly as any other phase
or the so-called Indian question, which,
| after all, Is not question at all, but
merely point of common honesty and
conscience. J. spent some months in the
West last summer and turned over In nv
mead good many different plans. This
that l have finally decided on is a mod
est enough scneme at the start, though /
hope 1t may grow into something OF ac.
tual good.
SIT is really an Industrial project, not
an educational plan. The strongest de-
sire OF the Indian, man or woman, who
has come In contact with civilization at
! all, is to wear the clothing of the white
people. They will beg it, buy it il they
have money, one and all. 1t is impossi-
bic TO provide for even fraction of those
who desire it, for the ouly supply is
through the packages sent to the mlssIon-
aries families from the east. 1t is this
demand for clothing that | am going to
take advantage Of to supply the Indian
girls with an industry, AT Grow Creek
shall take perhaps two at first, afterward
larger number, into the house with me.
! They will be Ham ptOn students who can
cut and fit and sew. We shall supply
garments that can be sold to the Indians
at moderate prices, and | look to see a
business grow out of it In time-not in
my hands, perhaps-that shall supply
| employment to women who are sadly in
need of 1t. 1t will be the first effort
to organize work for the Indian girls.
and they are quite ready to take hold
OF it."
The stations at Crow Creek and Lower
BrHle. which are in southern Dakota on
the Missouri river, are in charge OF Mai,
| Anderson, one of the best known and
most efficient of the Indian agents, who is
in full sympathy with the education al
and industrial projects of Miss Good ale
and Miss Howard The Indians ara
of the Sioux tribes and are showing
themselves open to the influences of civil.
cation.
Miss Goodals. so Miss Howard tells
me, has established herself comfortably
with books and pictures and the thou
sand and one refinements of woman's
home about her, and is incli ed to laugh
little at the wasted sympathy that has
been layished upon her, as one who had,
in devotion to a hopeless cause, banIshed
herself from civilization. Her compan-
ion, Miss Tileston, who has been appoint
/ ed missionary to the station, oo-0perates
| with her in the school work, and toyether
they hope to raise the standard of the day
schools provided for the Indians. They
have already q daily average attendance
OF forty sons and daughters of the forest
and look TO see yet more thumbing SPELL
ing book and reader.
Something of what it means to be a sue
| cessful teacher of the Indians and some.
thing ottbe absolute seii-surrender that
the work to these women implies may be
inferred from the reason that Miss
| Howard rave me for the failure OF some OF
the government day schools on the
| frontier. "There have been teachers,v
she said, "whO have accepted their situs-
tions for the salaries; VINO have done their
| days work in the class room aud then
expected an evening set apart for their
own uses. Now at Hampton have seen
! The little Indian girls creeping softly into
a teachers room at 6 O'Clock IN the morn.
ing and sitting there whispering under
their breath till she woke. that they might
not waste minute OF the day that she
/ could give them IL Ia nhaoiuta